①A person intending to engage in the extraction of hot springs from a hot spring source as a business must apply to the prefectural governor and obtain the permission for each site of hot spring extraction pursuant to the provisions of the Order of the Ministry of the Environment. However, this does not apply if a person that has received the confirmation referred to in Article 14-5, paragraph (1) extracts hot springs at the site of hot spring extraction specified in that confirmation.

②When an application has been filed for the permission referred to in the preceding paragraph, the prefectural governor must grant the permission referred to in that paragraph, unless the application falls under any of the following items:

③The provisions of Article 4, paragraphs (2) and (3) apply mutatis mutandis to the permission referred to in paragraph (1). In this case, the term "for the protection of hot springs, the prevention of disasters caused by flammable natural gas, and other matters in public interest" in paragraph (3) of the same Article is deemed to be replaced with "for the prevention of disasters caused by flammable natural gas".

①In the case of a merger of corporations that have obtained the permission referred to in paragraph (1) of the preceding Article (excluding the situation where a corporation that has obtained the permission under the same paragraph continues to exist after merging with a corporation that has not obtained the permission), or in the case of a split of corporations that have obtained the permission (limited to situations where the entire business of extracting hot springs related to the permission is succeeded), if the merger or split has been approved by the prefectural governor, the corporation that continues to exist after the merger, the corporation established by the merger, or the corporation that succeeds to the entire business through the split is to succeed to the status of the person that obtained the permission referred to in the same paragraph.

②The provisions of Article 4, paragraph (2) and paragraph (2) of the preceding Article (limited to the part related to items (ii) through (iv)) apply mutatis mutandis to the approval referred to in the preceding paragraph. In this case, the term "the applicant" in paragraph (2) of the same Article is deemed to be replaced with "the corporation surviving the merger, the corporation established by the merger, or the corporation succeeding in the entire business of extracting hot springs related to the permission through the split".

①If a person who has obtained the permission referred to in Article 14-2, paragraph (1) dies, and the heir (if there are two or more heirs and the heir who is to succeed to the business of extracting hot springs related to the permission has been selected with the consent of all the heirs, that person; the same applies below in this Article) intends to continue to conduct the extraction of hot springs related to the permission in the course of business, the heir must file an application to the prefectural governor within sixty days after the death of the decedent and obtain the approval of the prefectural governor.

②If an heir applies for the approval referred to in the preceding paragraph, the permission referred to in Article 14-2, paragraph (1) which has been granted to the decedent is deemed to have been granted to the heir from the date of the death of the decedent until the date on which the heir obtains the approval or receives notice of non-approval.

③The provisions of Article 4, paragraph (2) and Article 14-2, paragraph (2) (limited to the part related to items (ii) and (iii)) apply mutatis mutandis to the approval referred to in paragraph (1).

④An heir who has obtained the approval referred to in paragraph (1) succeeds to the status of the person that has obtained the permission referred to in Article 14-2, paragraph (1) in relation to the decedent.

①A person intending to extract hot springs from a hot spring source in the course of business may receive the confirmation from the prefectural governor, pursuant to the provisions of the Order of the Ministry of the Environment, that the concentration of flammable natural gas at the site of hot spring extraction does not exceed the standards specified by the Order of the Ministry of the Environment as not requiring measures to prevent disasters caused by flammable natural gas.

②The provisions of Article 4, paragraph (2) apply mutatis mutandis to the confirmation referred to in the preceding paragraph.

③A prefectural governor must revoke the confirmation referred to in paragraph (1) in the following cases:

①When a person that has received the confirmation referred to in paragraph (1) of the preceding Article transfers the entire hot spring extraction business related to the confirmation, or if such a person becomes subject to inheritance, a merger (excluding the situation where a corporation that has received the confirmation referred to in the same paragraph survives after margining with a corporation that has not received the confirmation), or a split (limited to situations where the entire hot spring extraction business related to the confirmation is succeeded), a person that acquires the entire business, an heir (if there are two or more heirs, and an heir who is to succeed to the hot spring extraction business related to the confirmation is selected with the consent of all the heirs, the selected heir), a corporation surviving a merger, a corporation established by the merger, or a corporation succeeding to the entire business through the split is to succeed to the status of the person that received the confirmation referred to in the same paragraph.

②A person that has succeeded in the status of the person that has received the confirmation referred to in paragraph (1) of the preceding Article pursuant to the provisions of the preceding paragraph must give notice to the prefectural governor to that effect without delay, with a document proving that fact.

①When a person that has obtained the permission referred to in Article 14-2, paragraph (1) intends to make a significant change to the site, structure, or equipment of the facilities for extracting hot springs or the method of extraction specified by the Order of the Ministry of the Environment in order to prevent disasters caused by flammable natural gas, the person must apply to the prefectural governor and obtain the permission pursuant to the provisions of the Order of the Ministry of the Environment.

②The provisions of Article 14-2, paragraph (2) (limited to the part related to item (i)) and Article 4, paragraphs (2) and (3) as applied mutatis mutandis pursuant to paragraph (3) of the same Article apply mutatis mutandis to the permission referred to in the preceding paragraph.

①When a person that has obtained the permission referred to in Article 14-2, paragraph (1) or received the confirmation referred to in Article 14-5, paragraph (1) discontinues the hot spring extraction business related to that permission or confirmation, the person must give notice of this to the prefectural governor without delay, pursuant to the provisions of the Order of the Ministry of the Environment.

②When a notification under the provisions of the preceding paragraph has been filed, the permission referred to in Article 14-2, paragraph (1) or the confirmation referred to in Article 14-5, paragraph (1) ceases to be effective.

③When a person that has obtained the permission referred to in Article 14-2, paragraph (1) or the confirmation referred to in Article 14-5, paragraph (1) discontinues the hot spring extraction business related to that permission or confirmation, or when a prefectural governor revokes the permission referred to in Article 14-2, paragraph (1), the governor may order the person that discontinued the extraction or whose permission has been revoked to take necessary measures to prevent disasters caused by the flammable natural gas generated by the person's extraction of hot springs for two years from the date of discontinuation or revocation.

①A prefectural governor may revoke the permission referred to in Article 14-2, paragraph (1) in the following cases:

②In the cases referred to in item (i), (iii), or (iv) of the preceding paragraph, the prefectural governor may order the person that has obtained the permission referred to in Article 14-2, paragraph (1) to take necessary measures to prevent disasters caused by flammable natural gas.

When a prefectural governor finds it urgently necessary to prevent disasters caused by the flammable natural gas resulting from the extraction of hot springs, the governor may order the person to conduct the extraction to take necessary measures to prevent such disasters or to suspend the extraction.